The present invention relates to the cultivation of plants. More particularly, the present invention relates to the cultivation and display of plants in a decorative planter into which a water and or nutrient-containing fog is in fluid communication with the base or root of a plurality of plants, or a planting medium.
The art of growing plants for decorative purposes has been practiced since ancient times. Countless inventions have been developed to solve many of the problems associated with growing and maintaining healthy plants, given the constraints that arise within a particular environment. The present invention intends to specifically target the issues of growing plants in urban or indoor environments where space and direct sunlight may be limited and the cleanliness, portability, maintainability, and visual appeal of both the plants and planter are important.
Previous self contained planter designs include U.S. Pat. No. 5,161,327, which discloses a planter made up of tubular sections, each containing a growing medium and an array of plants that can be artistically arranged while allowing fluid to pass from one section to the next. The tube sections are arranged horizontally and take up a considerable amount of space.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,171,782 discloses a planter made from a vertical tube in which multiple plants can be easily inserted or removed. Such vertically oriented structures conserve floor space and often include automatic watering systems to avoid the need to water each plant individually. In the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,555,676, fluids are pumped to the top of a planter and trickle down a planting medium. U.S. Pat. No. 5,276,997 discloses a planter with an improved irrigation system designed to keep fluids distributed evenly throughout a planter. However, such watering systems have the potential leak or clog. This problem is addressed in U.S. Pat. No. 7,516,574, which discloses an automatic watering planter that lacks any valves or moving parts.
Numerous inventions have improved the growing capabilities of vertical planters by employing hydroponic systems to provide nutrients to plants by immersing the roots in fluids rather than soil. Such hydroponic systems include U.S. Pat. No. 4,986,027, which discloses a vertical hydroponic planter, where plants are inserted into holes in the side of a tube and held in place by a soilless medium into which a nutrient fluid is introduced. This system, however, offers little versatility since it is difficult to replace parts or add plants once a planter is assembled.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,055,282. Discloses a hydroponic planter, made up of several stackable tubes allowing the addition or removal of planter sections, while U.S. Pat. No. 5,502,923 discloses another planter made up of stackable modules, each containing an array of plants in removable baskets so that individual plants can be added or removed as well as sections of the planter.
While hydroponic systems succeed in growing plants quickly the devices employed tend to be bulky and reduce the visual appeal of the planter and its ability to be artistically integrated within its surrounding environment. Additionally the tendency for fluid to flow downward due to gravity limits the orientations that such plants and planter modules can be arranged.
This problem can be resolved using an aeroponic system, in which a plant's roots are kept in a gaseous environment and nutrients are introduced as a spray or mist as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,332,105. This does not require the storage of fluids at the plant's roots allowing more freedom in the design of a vertical planter. Such systems are utilized in the inventions disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,918,416, and 8,250,809. Both inventions, however, require liquid nutrients to be pumped to the top of a planter, which inhibits freedom of the planters design and has the potential leak or clog.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,136,804 discloses an aeroponic planter which uses an ultrasonic transducer to vaporize water directly from a reservoir eliminating the need for any liquid containing tubes. While the output of an ultrasonic humidifier varies depending on its surrounding, a planter with a built in stabilization method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,937,575. The output of the humidifier can be further optimized to provide the ideal levels of moisture and nutrients specific to the plants being cultivated. Both inventions, however, include the recirculation of fluids, which require filtering to prevent the deterioration of the quality of the nutrient solution.
By supplying nutrients in vapor form, the design of a vertical planter is limited primarily by its ability to allow each plant enough light to survive. A planter designed to accommodate a built in light source is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,615,542. However, in this invention a central light source is provided and one or more planters are arranged around it. To allow more freedom in a planter's design, a planter structure could be constructed and then equipped with an array of light sources, each directed at a portion of the planter.
With the ability to keep a consistent flow of water and nutrients to an array of plant at the base or roots, as well as provide adequate light, the structure of a vertical planter and the location and orientation of plants within it can easily take on a much wider range of shapes and designs than those of the inventions listed above.
Therefore, it would be useful to provide a vertical planter in which water and nutrients are supplied, in vapor form, throughout a central structure into which plants can be inserted with light sources directed towards the plants.